Aside: You know already what is going to be discussed tonight? What Sessions is going to say? You have that kind of in?

I'm impressed...

__________________Scott

'03 HSEGo Hokies! - Ut Prosim

Dangerous time when our country is led by those who will lie about anything, backed by those who will believe anything, based on information from media sources that will say anything. Americans must break out of that bubble and seek truth.

You guys sure are putting a lot of faith into a drunk wanna be in a London bar, talking with the largest International Clinton donor (25 MIL), making it's way into a Dossier that was funded by the Clinton Campaign and used for a FISA warrant for the FBI to investigate further when according to Comey President Trump was not being investigated in the first place. I could go on about all the little details but will do that later.

I'm sure that Seychelles meeting facilitated by the UAE with Betsy Devos's brother (and Xtreme badass) Erik Prince is like everything else (that has actually resulted in real indictments-despite all the failure to acknowledge people have admitted to federal crimes, already)...it won't amount to much. This is almost over, just like it was almost over six months ago.

Hmm...Sessions said about a second special counsel, he would consider it, take it under advisement.

Hint: That's politician-speak for, "I'm not going to do shit."

Oh, and he said that there are new people in place since the first FISA was issued, so no need to investigate them. (Hmmm...who said that earlier?)

So, your turn (again): Why do you think it is necessary?

__________________Scott

'03 HSEGo Hokies! - Ut Prosim

Dangerous time when our country is led by those who will lie about anything, backed by those who will believe anything, based on information from media sources that will say anything. Americans must break out of that bubble and seek truth.

You guys sure are putting a lot of faith into a drunk wanna be in a London bar, t

My faith is in Mueller figuring out the what, when, where, and who broke laws.

If he says there's nothing there, then there's nothing there. But it sure doesn't sound like it.

__________________Scott

'03 HSEGo Hokies! - Ut Prosim

Dangerous time when our country is led by those who will lie about anything, backed by those who will believe anything, based on information from media sources that will say anything. Americans must break out of that bubble and seek truth.

Nope, he said he already out an outside independent source looking into it. What the ears want to hear....

Wonder what that's all about?

Far, far cry from a special counsel.

It could just be a US attorney in LA.

__________________Scott

'03 HSEGo Hokies! - Ut Prosim

Dangerous time when our country is led by those who will lie about anything, backed by those who will believe anything, based on information from media sources that will say anything. Americans must break out of that bubble and seek truth.

LOL, Special counsels don't have to be announced Scott. Not saying there is one but whatever it is I'd bet it's a bit larger than a US Attorney in LA. After everything that's gone on with the DNC/Emails/contents of Emails and the Clinton Foundation does everyone just think it's going to come and go? That there wasn't more to that story? No huge laws were broken? That it's just going away because HRC lost? Whew. Putting one and one together.

LOL, Special counsels don't have to be announced Scott. Not saying there is one but whatever it is I'd bet it's a bit larger than a US Attorney in LA. After everything that's gone on with the DNC/Emails/contents of Emails and the Clinton Foundation does everyone just think it's going to come and go? That there wasn't more to that story? No huge laws were broken? That it's just going away because HRC lost? Whew. Putting one and one together.

There was indeed collusion. Who dun it?

You still haven't said why a special prosecutor is needed to investigate those things. Why can't the DOJ do it?

Dangerous time when our country is led by those who will lie about anything, backed by those who will believe anything, based on information from media sources that will say anything. Americans must break out of that bubble and seek truth.

I'm sure that Seychelles meeting facilitated by the UAE with Betsy Devos's brother (and Xtreme badass) Erik Prince is like everything else (that has actually resulted in real indictments-despite all the failure to acknowledge people have admitted to federal crimes, already)...it won't amount to much. This is almost over, just like it was almost over six months ago.

Dangerous time when our country is led by those who will lie about anything, backed by those who will believe anything, based on information from media sources that will say anything. Americans must break out of that bubble and seek truth.

The funny part is this. The media reports on special Russian meetings to just to jack ratings with a Trump Bump. Hate to tell everyone but special Russian meetings and special meetings with many other countries have been happening a long, long time. I want to see proven laws that were broken in these 'meetings'. But first, I'd like proof the meeting took place to begin with. Kinda like the Clinton/Lynch Tarmac hop meeting. Proof. Let's start there.

On the day Britian calls out Russia, the House GOP says Russia didn't do anything during the 2016 election (directly contradicting out intelligence services).

What the fuck happened to the GOP? Since when was is Republican policy to ignore Russian agression?

Reagan must be spinning in his grave. And Buckley, and Ike, and every other cold war warrior of the last 70 yrs

__________________Scott

'03 HSEGo Hokies! - Ut Prosim

Dangerous time when our country is led by those who will lie about anything, backed by those who will believe anything, based on information from media sources that will say anything. Americans must break out of that bubble and seek truth.

This past week I spent a lot of time driving - took the kids to NY/NJ to see family/NYC - so I was listening to Dan Carlin's Hardcore History podcast on WWI (Blueprint for Armageddon, it's 6 parts, each at least 3 hours long). Very worthwhile.

At one point, he was talking about how the Germans decided that using the U-boats to attack ALL shipping to Britain/France from the US (unrestricted submarine warfare) was the advent of total war - that the people behind the front lines were legitimate targets because they supported (through farming/food, munitions, etc.) the people at the front. The goal, on both sides (the British had already blockaded Germany, and those people were starving) was to put enough suffering on the people (including war casualties) that their society would collapse and they would have to sue for peace. Which is precisely what happened with Russia. Both sides thought each other was close to collapse, and they all were.

He also talks extensively about how the generals were still in a 19th century mentality at the beginning in how to fight the war, but that in the later stages the new, 20th century mentality of total war took hold. Essentially, this was the pivot to an entirely new form of warfare that everyone was unprepared for.

Other things he talked about was how the new technology of U-boats and underwater mines made the British basically keep their Super Dreadnoughts in port vs attacking close to the enemy's ports, and the Germans keeping theirs in port for fear of losing theirs to the superior British Navy. Basically, they had these fantastic weapons platforms that were rendered useless by newer technology, that cost significantly less.

That got me thinking about our current state of affairs with cyber attacks (from Russia, but also China, NK).

What if the US society could be brought to it knees by cyber warfare vs conventional warfare? What if Russia, China, etc. could cause our society to collapse, and THEN walk in with troops? vs start a war with conventional troops and bolster the attacks with cyber? Could they render our military might useless without even "firing a shot?"

Are we at the beginning of a new type of warfare? Is the US prepared?

I'm sure I'm not the first person to think of this (some war college has probably already gamed it out many times), but it was frightening to think of how vulnerable to cyber attack the West is. China and Russia (definitely not NK) are probably not as interconnected as we are as a society and dependent on computers for everyday operations. How fragile is society today if we lost power for weeks? Gasoline and other basics? Food? I've always believed that modern society is held together by the thinnest of threads - that most people would not know how to survive without modern conveniences - take those away and people will revert to the time of the savages: "I'll take what I want, and don't care about who I have to kill to get it."

All the more reason why we need to understand what Russia has done, and continues to do, versus calling it "fake news" and keeping our heads in the sand.

__________________Scott

'03 HSEGo Hokies! - Ut Prosim

Dangerous time when our country is led by those who will lie about anything, backed by those who will believe anything, based on information from media sources that will say anything. Americans must break out of that bubble and seek truth.

1. Sov... err... Russians built a bridge over the Euphrates which was the designated 'deconfliction line'. Why? Reasons. 'Committee of Nations' or something.

2. 'Hybrid' force of mixed Russian contractors including multiple non-ethnic Russians (Serbs, Cossack, other non Slavics) as well as local Syrian Army 'commandos' attacked across temporary bridge. The 'Russian' side were 'Blackwater' equivalent mercenaries from a company generally called 'Wagner' which is the nom de plume of the boss. (Like if you called Blackwater 'Prince'.)

3. Unit was partially mechanized, battalion strength. (One thing everyone agrees upon is 'about 600-700 personnel.') Had some towed artillery as well as 't-55 and T-72 MBT as well as armored personnel carriers.' (Type unknown.) Full on 'we're taking that position and you're not stopping us' full court press.

4. Unit crossed bridge, arty deployed.

5. Arty opened fire while most of unit was still in approach column formation. (Normal) One portion moved to flanking positions.

5A. Minute the arty opened fire SHIT GOT REAL REAL QUICK.

6. Reapers took out artillery and most of armor with Hellfire. From the few videos, pretty much before they knew what hit them. There had to be quite a few Reaper drones up or they were feeding guidance to Hellfire from Apaches (see below.)

7. F-15E Eagles came in for clean-up and to check for anti-air defenses.

8. Warthogs showed up just to go BRRRRRRT!

9. AC-130 Spectre started fucking up their day for the hell of it.

10. To add insult to injury, B-52s which, you know, just HAPPENED to be in the area, just minding our own business, just passing by from Diego Garcia which is a few thousand miles away, on our way to... somewhere... nothing to see here... decided to prove they could drop their entire load as precision guided weapons and just more or less DID A JDAM ARCLIGHT ON THEIR ASS. At that point, more or less because CENTCOM said 'Why not? ARCLIGHT is always pretty to watch...'

11. The whole thing being so over it was ridiculous, AH-64 Apaches basically did 'hostile Bomb Damage Assessment' and complained there were no targets left.

12. Oh, and then the Kurds, to just really FUCK with these guys, released water from a dam upstream and broke their bridge. So they had to ford back with their wounded.

13. Nobody knows how many dead and wounded. Russians are saying 'only 8 Russian citizens' but that doesn't quite cover the whole of who may have been involved. One repeated number is 200 dead (remember, mixed Syrians, Russians and other ethnics) as well as pretty much the rest of the force wounded. (Not to mention pretty thoroughly demoralized.) One Kurd wounded. Probably fell off a stool laughing to tell truth.

14. Military hospitals in Russia are reliably reported 'overflowing.'

This was much less a 'battle' than a message. Towards the end we had to just be pounding ground to make sure they got it.

Messages, really.

A. Don't fucking cross that river.
B. Hey, North Korea! LOOK WHAT I CAN DO!
C. Hey, Putin, about Donbas... This is what we can do to your 'freedom fighters' (AKA: mercenaries) at any time.
D. To everyone in general: You need to remember who's boss.
Mattis is playing dumb. 'What Russians? There were Russians? Really? I'm seeing that in the media but I got no briefing on there being Russians in that column. Our bad. Sorry about that.'

Then there's the fact that the strike was NOT approved by the President.

Because he gave CENTOM the approval on things like that.

And CENTCOM handled it like a BOSS.

Oh, and when the forces crossed the river the Russians were informed and informed that we intended to take 'self-defense' actions.

So they can't even say they weren't warned.

I'm not sure we warned them we'd be using BUFF.

This is more the sort of thing I'd expect in late summer.

'Shit! We haven't expended our budget! Are there any Russians we can fuck up very badly with all these unexpended munitions?'

Then there's the fact that the strike was NOT approved by the President.

Because he gave CENTOM the approval on things like that.

And CENTCOM handled it like a BOSS.

While I'm glad we gave the Russians the what-for, this is the kind of stuff that scares me.

The military has the authority to conduct strikes/attacks on other nation's (particularly those with nukes) forces without approval from civilian authorities (read: the President)? That should send chills down the spine of everyone.

What if the general in NK decides it's a good idea to fire some arty at the NKs just to "send a message" and NK responds in kind - on Seoul?

__________________Scott

'03 HSEGo Hokies! - Ut Prosim

Dangerous time when our country is led by those who will lie about anything, backed by those who will believe anything, based on information from media sources that will say anything. Americans must break out of that bubble and seek truth.

While I'm glad we gave the Russians the what-for, this is the kind of stuff that scares me.

The military has the authority to conduct strikes/attacks on other nation's (particularly those with nukes) forces without approval from civilian authorities (read: the President)? That should send chills down the spine of everyone.

What if the general in NK decides it's a good idea to fire some arty at the NKs just to "send a message" and NK responds in kind - on Seoul?

You are reading WAY too much into that. ROE under any past admin probably would have been the same. BTW, remember this was not an attack by us just the response to that attack.

You are reading WAY too much into that. ROE under any past admin probably would have been the same. BTW, remember this was not an attack by us just the response to that attack.

Gotcha.

__________________Scott

'03 HSEGo Hokies! - Ut Prosim

Dangerous time when our country is led by those who will lie about anything, backed by those who will believe anything, based on information from media sources that will say anything. Americans must break out of that bubble and seek truth.

USA Today and the James Madison Project has gone to court to try to force release of documents the feds used when they sought the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance (FISA) Court's permission to wiretap Page. The Department of Justice's lawyers have asked a federal judge to give them until July to figure out what to make public. Today a judge approved the request.

__________________Scott

'03 HSEGo Hokies! - Ut Prosim

Dangerous time when our country is led by those who will lie about anything, backed by those who will believe anything, based on information from media sources that will say anything. Americans must break out of that bubble and seek truth.